Nelnet Government Services Brings a User-Friendly, Accessible Mobile App to All Colorado Residents

Colorado's Office of Information Technology (OIT) partnered with Nelnet Government Services to make the state's award-winning myColorado mobile app accessible to residents using assistive technologies, to ensure compliance with new policies (WCAG 2.1 AA) before their deadline. Nelnet Government Services won an accessibility pool contract in 2022, which made its accessibility team eligible to provide services to the state of Colorado and its agencies. OIT subsequently engaged the team later that year to audit and remediate the app for both iOS and Android.

The myColorado app supports more than 1 million residents with services such as electronic driver's licenses and state IDs, vaccination records, wildlife licenses, DMV transactions, as well as applications for medical, food, cash, and early childhood assistance. The engagement was designed to ensure all residents, including those with visual, auditory, mobility, or cognitive disabilities, could use these services independently.

Results & Impact

Working alongside the myColorado team, Nelnet Government Services delivered accessibility enhancements across the entire app, broadening usability for residents who rely on screen readers, switch access, voice recognition, and other assistive technologies. Key changes included:

• Entire screens and workflows updated for screen reader, switch access, and voice recognition users
• Labels enhanced or added to clarify buttons and form fields for screen reader users
• Reading and tabbing order optimized for a logical experience for keyboard and assistive technology users
• Visual contrast and touch target sizes adjusted for improved readability and interaction across devices
• Headings introduced or revised to help users understand screen structure and navigate with screen readers
• Interactive controls, including links, buttons, and form fields, made fully accessible and responsive
• Reflow improvements implemented so content and controls remained visible and functional when font sizes were increased or devices rotated

The login and account creation journeys were also updated to meet Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.1 Level AA compliance, and qualifying residents gained the option to add a disability identifier to their driver's license. This had the additional benefit of helping first responders better support individuals who communicate differently due to cognitive, neurological, psychological, physical, or sensory needs. The engagement brought the full myColorado app into alignment with WCAG 2.1 Level AA standards, with particular attention to ensuring iOS and Android delivered an equivalent experience.

The Challenge

Similar to the upcoming Title 2 Accessibility deadline approaching in April of 2027 for cities and municipalities across the United States, Colorado's accessibility law required all state agencies' web applications to comply with Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act and Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act by July 1, 2024. Usage of the myColorado app had grown more complex over time, and OIT did not have in-house accessibility expertise to bring the entire app into compliance by the deadline. Nationally, the CDC reports that 25.7% of the U.S. population lives with at least one disability, underscoring the scale of residents who could be affected by inaccessible digital services.

The Solution

OIT engaged Nelnet Government Services' Accessibility Engineering, iOS, and Android Developer teams to audit and remediate myColorado. The project saw 10 to 20 Nelnet experts embedded within the OIT development team at various points to provide full auditing and remediation services.

A priority for OIT was equity between platforms, ensuring the iOS version was not a better experience than Android. Nelnet's team also worked to build OIT's internal accessibility capacity alongside the remediation work itself, so the agency would be better equipped to build accessible solutions going forward.

"Apart from helping to support the OIT's development process, we've really helped them evaluate the myColorado app, understand where they have accessibility issues, and then bring those issues into compliance so that the app is now accessible to all Colorado users as opposed to just a specific set. It's about making the dreams of everyone possible."

— Tara Duggar, IT Manager, Nelnet Government Services

Implementation and Investment

Nelnet Government Services became eligible to serve Colorado state agencies through an accessibility pool contract awarded in 2022. OIT engaged the team later that year, beginning with an audit of the login and registration flow and expanding to a full app-wide accessibility remediation across iOS and Android.

"While the return on investment for Nelnet is tough to calculate, the true reward has been in helping all Colorado state residents access the mobile app that simplifies their lives."

— John Vialpando, Director, Business Development, Nelnet Government Services

Replicability

The Colorado deployment demonstrates the model's applicability beyond a single state agency: any government entity managing a complex, high-traffic digital service, with ADA, Section 508, or WCAG compliance obligations, faces the same core accessibility gap that Nelnet Government Services was brought in to close.

The Alliance for Innovation’s ADA Web Accessibility Consulting contract, available through Civic Marketplace, is a cooperative contract already pre-awarded to vetted suppliers including Nelnet Government Services as an awardee. The contract can be used by any U.S. government entity with cooperative-purchasing authority, in any state, without the need to run a new bid process.